The Swan Lake Fire can be seen from above on Monday, Aug. 26 on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. (Photo courtesy Alaska Wildland Fire Information)

The Swan Lake Fire can be seen from above on Monday, Aug. 26 on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. (Photo courtesy Alaska Wildland Fire Information)

Fire season outlook ‘average’ this year

While the outlook looks average, weather patterns and fire mitigation techniques can all be factors.

Fire season is expected to be average on the central peninsula this summer, the fire management officer for the Kenai-Kodiak area said on Tuesday.

Howie Kent with the Division of Forestry said that while the outlook looks average, weather patterns and fire mitigation techniques can all be factors.

“We have the potential every single year to have a Swan Lake or Funny River-type fire,” Kent said.

In 2014 the early spring caused the Funny River Fire in Soldotna, which burned close to 200,000 acres by the end of May of that year, according to Peninsula Clarion files.

More recently, Kent said, the Swan Lake fire eviscerated 168,000 miles of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge in the summer of 2019. The fire started on June 5 and didn’t reach monitoring status — the point at which officials are comfortable it won’t escape the perimeter before heavy precipitation helps extinguish the fire — until October 4.

Although the Swan Lake fire started from a lightning strike, around 96% of wildland fires are human-caused on the Kenai Peninsula, Kent said, emphasizing that escaped debris burns are the leading kind of human-caused fires.

“May and June are the most critical months,” Kent said.

Dead grass and other dried organic material can easily catch ablaze, while the wind can carry sparks quickly, he said.

The Division of Forestry often creates fuel breaks in forests with a higher probability of fire danger, which refers to altered vegetation in order to control or slow the spread of the flames. Kent said other federal agencies and Native corporations also aid in fire mitigation.

“It’s a coordinated effort for sure,” he said.

Around 60 out of every 200 or 250 calls, Kent said, are fires the department needs to suppress. The others are often small burns or unattended campfires, and sometimes just get filed as smoke reports.

Kent also emphasized the importance of adhering to burn permits.

These are required for anyone looking to burn this spring and summer. They can be found online at forestry.alaska.gov or at the Natural Resources-Forestry Division in Soldotna, as well as at different businesses and community centers in Kenai and Soldotna, including the fire stations, post offices and general stores.

Reach reporter Camille Botello at camille.botello@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in News

Kenai Middle School Principal Vaughn Dosko points out elements of a redesign plan for the front of the school on Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Work soon to begin on Kenai Middle security upgrades

The security upgrades are among several key KPBSD maintenance projects included in a bond approved by borough voters in October 2022.

The Kenai Fire Department headquarters are photographed on Feb. 13, 2018, in Kenai, Alaska. (Peninsula Clarion file)
Kenai adds funds, authorizes contract for study of emergency services facility

The building shared by Kenai’s police and fire departments hasn’t kept up with the needs of both departments, chief says.

Kenai Parks and Recreation Director Tyler Best shows off a new inclusive seesaw at Kenai Municipal Park in Kenai, Alaska, on Thursday, June 27, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai awards contract to develop Parks and Rec master plan

The document is expected to guide the next 20 years of outdoors and recreation development in the city.

Balancing Act’s homepage for the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District’s Fiscal Year 2026 Budget. (Screenshot)
KPBSD launches ‘Balancing Act’ software, calls for public to balance $17 million deficit

The district and other education advocates have said that the base student allocation has failed to keep up with inflation.

Natural gas processing equipment is seen at Furie Operating Alaska’s central processing facility in Nikiski, Alaska, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Harvest Alaska announces proposed redevelopment of Kenai LNG terminal

The project could deliver additional natural gas supplies to the Southcentral market as early as 2026, developers said.

A depth marker is almost entirely subsumed by the waters of the Kenai River in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
After delay, borough adopts updated flood insurance maps

The assembly had previously postponed the legislation amid outcry from the Kenai River Keys Property Owners Association.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche points to where the disconnected baler ram has bent piping at the Central Peninsula Landfill in Soldotna, Alaska, on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Borough approves federal request to fund recycling redesign

A large baler that was used for recycling was recently left inoperable by a catastrophic failure in its main ram.

A person is detained in Anchorage in recent days by officials from the FBI and U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (FBI Anchorage Field Office photo)
Trump’s immigration raids arrive in Alaska, while Coast Guard in state help deportations at southern US border

Anchorage arrests touted by FBI, DEA; Coast Guard plane from Kodiak part of “alien expulsion flight operations.”

Jamiann S’eiltin Hasselquist asks participants to kneel as a gesture to “stay grounded in the community” during a protest in front of the Alaska State Capitol on Wednesday focused on President Donald Trump’s actions since the beginning of his second term. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Trump protest rally at Alaska State Capitol targets Nazi-like salutes, challenges to Native rights

More than 120 people show up as part of nationwide protest to actions during onset of Trump’s second term.

Most Read